The juice of citrus fruits has long been popular as a beverage due to its flavor, as well as its nutritional and health promoting properties.
In currently available industrial-scale machines for citrus juice extraction, the citrus fruit is placed one-at-a-time between a series of two opposed cups that move toward each other. A hole is cut in the skin or peel of each citrus fruit, and as the cups move together to squeeze the fruit, the internal components of the fruit, including juice, pulp (or juice sacs) and seeds, plus the cut portion of the peel are forced through the hole cut in the fruit and into a strainer tube. The juice and some pulp then are forced outward through the strainer tube and collected in a reservoir, while the undesired seeds and peel remain in the tube and are subsequently disposed of. See, generally, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,996,485 and 5,655,441, which disclose two different configurations for juice extractors, and which are incorporated herein by reference.
Over time, it has been determined that many people prefer the taste of juice with intact pulp cells or juice sacs. In extractors of the type described in the above-identified patents, the strainer tubes are believed to be configured and/or oriented in such a way to restrict the flow of intact juice sacs therethrough, at times resulting in loss of valuable pulp into waste streams or less desirable byproducts. Flow restriction which can be characteristic of prior extractors also can result in a significant number of fruit sacs becoming cut or otherwise damaged when passing through the strainer tube. Further, while pulpier juice is desired, the travel of extraneous pulpy material into the primary juice stream through the strainer tube must be avoided.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide a juice extractor which provides for pulpier, more flavorful juice product.
More specifically, it is an object of the present invention to provide a juice extractor that incorporates an improved strainer tube assembly that permits more of the desirable pulp to flow therethrough while limiting the travel of the undesirable portions of the inside of the fruit into the juice stream.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved citrus juice extraction apparatus and method which satisfy a desirable texture profile analysis of pulp juice while reducing pulp damage and increasing pulp extraction efficiency and desirable pulp yield.